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those who add veggies to dinner - how much?

In my quest to get a few pounds off Watson (about 23.5 lbs, should be closer to 21/22 - he's a big guy), I'm adding about 1/8 cup veggies to his mostly dry Innova dinner (I add a tablespoon of canned Innova). Anyway, I've been using a steamed carrots, cauliflower, broccoli mix.

My question is: how MUCH of the veggies do those of you who give veggies... give? He really likes them, so I'd like to give more. I think it might fill him up better, and he'll stop going back to lick his bowl or search for "goodies" in the cat litter, neither of which he did before the "diet". I've so far only been doing veggies with his dinner, but he also has a 1/4 cub kibble-only breakfast.

Also, how fast is the recommended speed of weight loss? He lost about a half pound the past week, which doesn't seem like much. But then again, at his size, I guess it is.

Half a pound is probably a bit fast for a dog. I aimed for about a pound a month with Lily and that was pretty fast weight loss for her.

I'd talk to your vet about how much he should be fed and how to manage diet and what weight you should be aiming for. Often people think it is only a pound or two and really the dog needs to lose two to three times that much, so it is good to work with your vet.

In general, I cut the caloric part -- dry/wet food -- by a third. You can feed a handful or two of veg a day. You don't need to cook the veg. I often give a handful of frozen green beans with a meal for example. I also give raw veg and fruit as treats all the time.

Casey has been on a diet for about 6 months now. I feed her 1/4 c dry only in the morning, 1/4 c dry in the evening, plus a handful of frozen veggies on top (green beans, carrots, peas mix from a bag). She has lost 7 pounds in 6 months, so right around a pound a month.

Watson's on "senior" Innova kibble, which is virtually the same formulation as the "weight loss" kibble Innova no longer seems to be selling here. He gets 1/4 dry only in the morning and 1/2 cup dry w/ a tablespoon of canned and steamed veggies at night. I may switch his kibble to Wellness Healthy Weight, as it has a lower calorie value per cup - if I do the math right, I can give him a little more crunching per meal.

How do you guys weigh your dogs? So far, I've coaxed him into sitting on our digital bath scale.

His current snacks are thumbnail size pieces of chicken jerky (maybe two a day) and veggies. Plus a teeny bit of cheese for meds.

Well, Casey weighed a whopping 32 lbs when she started her diet, and is now down to 25. I believe her ideal weight is around 22-23 lbs, but the final 3 lbs are proving difficult to shed.

She WAS eating 1/2 c morning and night prior to her diet. I cut her kibble in HALF (per instructions here and another noted website) and added veggies to her food. I still feed her the same food I always have, but just cut down the amount.

She acted like I was starving her to death for two weeks and then she was fine. Although even now, she goes in the laundry room and lays by her food bowl for about 30 mins before dinner time....

That's great results Trisha. Did you increase her activity level too or just the food reduction? We have a few that are on diets and it's going very slowly. I'd appreciate any other advice. Thanks. I suspect that hubby is sneaking them treats which is what got them in trouble to begin with.

I increased their exercise slightly, but mainly the change in diet is what has been successful. And, yes, you have to watch the treats. If I give her treats, or a kong, or a chewy or something, I will feed her a little less the next morning to make up for the extra calories.